Thief’ eventually runs out of steam

“Identity Thief” R 
R — Fans 17 and older of riotous, raunchy film comedy will laugh appreciatively at first, and then start to wonder why “Identity Thief” doesn’t maintain the hilarity. Many parents will likely deem the profanity and crude sexual language in the film too strong a brew for under-17s, though teens may disagree.

Jason Bateman plays Sandy Patterson, a nice family guy working as a modestly paid internal accounts manager at a Denver financial firm. His wife (Amanda Peet) is pregnant with their third child. The boss (Jon Favreau) is a jerk, so when high-level traders (led by John Cho) leave to start their own company, Sandy goes too.

Then he gets a phone call from his credit card’s fraud department — he thinks. He gives all his information to the nice lady, not realizing it’s identity thief Diana (Melissa McCarthy) in Florida, about to put big charges on his card as she indulges a shopping addiction.

Police (led by Morris Chestnut) come after Sandy for fraud. When they realize his identity has been stolen, they tell him it could take a year to clear his name. He goes to Florida to bring his nemesis back and get her to confess.

Of course the mild Sandy and the potty-mouthed, no-boundaries Diana make a droll pair. But after a bounty hunter (Robert Patrick) and drug thugs (recording star T.I. and Genesis Rodriquez) come after them, the movie takes a tiresome turn and never quite recovers.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Crude, explicit sexual slang and strong profanity earn the R, along with comically explicit sexual situations, though no nudity, as Diana hooks up with a guy (Eric Stonestreet) in a bar. The mayhem in the film is more comic than graphic, though there is gunplay (with nongraphic injuries), fisticuffs, car chases and crashes. Some characters drink till they’re blotto. One camping scene may freak out snake phobics.

“Side Effects” R — Fairly explicit sexual situations and sexual themes, along with an intense exploration of mental illness — specifically depression and suicidal thoughts — make “Side Effects” too mature for most under-17s, and especially those who may be in treatment for depression themselves. Some more sophisticated older high-schoolers, however, could likely enjoy this taut psychological thriller.

Emily (Rooney Mara) is married to Martin (Channing Tatum), who has just finished a prison term for insider trading. She should be happy to have him home, but the young graphic artist finds her old depression and sense of “hopelessness” returning.

After she seems to deliberately smash her car into a parking garage wall, the hospital psychiatrist, Dr. Banks (Jude Law), becomes her therapist, prescribing various drugs to find the right one for her. Separately, Banks agrees to join in a pharmaceutical company’s study of a new anti-depressant, for which he’s paid.

Eventually he prescribes the drug for Emily, and while under its influence she commits a bloody murder. Now Dr. Banks comes under scrutiny, his ethics and expertise questioned, his new wife (Vinessa Shaw) wondering if he’s a charlatan or worse.

For the second half or so of the film, Banks sets about trying to learn the truth, possibly with help from Emily’s previous therapist, Dr. Siebert (Catherine Zeta-Jones). Unpredictable and brainy, “Side Effects” lingers in the brain long after the credits have rolled.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Ambiguous and ominous in the way it portrays depression, the film is not for older teens struggling with the condition themselves. It includes a graphic stabbing death with considerable blood. Characters engage in one fairly explicit sexual situation with nearly full nudity, and a couple of others that are more understated. Characters drink, misuse prescription drugs and utter occasional strong profanity.